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Those who think of Japanese culture as all samurai and ninjas may well come away from Yukio Ninagawa's Coriolanus with their impressions confirmed.

A time-consuming production of a repetitive play, this piece soars in the battle scenes, when martial arts routines of astonishing accuracy bring a feral excitement that's rare in theatre.

The connection between the warrior cultures of Japan and the Rome of this play has been noted before - the RSC did a Japanese-themed production a few years back.

Ninagawa's fusion sees the proud warrior Coriolanus confront the mob who will drag him down on a staircase of a set reminiscent of the Eternal City. But the rest is pure Rising Sun.

Sound effects punch up the fight scenes and schmaltzy music backs up moments of high drama to the point of becoming intrusive. Huge crowd scenes add to the effect of cinematic epic. But, glorious as the design is, by the end of the first act Ninagawa has played all his cards.

The personal drama that is left is slow and shouty. In many ways, the production mirrors its central character: strong in war scenes, uncomfortable in peace. Its relationship with its audience waxes and wanes accordingly.